THE COCOA-NUT PALM, AND ITS USES. 215 



" Sheltered amid the orchards of the sun, 

 Where high palmettos lift their graceful shade, 

 Give me to drain the cocoa's milky howl, 

 And from the palm to drain its freshing wine.'' 



There are many varieties of the palm. Among them the Caryota 

 urens is the most ornamental, with its long, pendulous clusters of dark- 

 red, succulent, acrid berries. The pith of this tree yields a species of 

 sago, and the sap is commonly employed in the Deccan as yeast for 

 raising or fomenting bread. There is also the travellers' palm, or 

 crab-tree, from which a watery juice is extracted, and which, crowning 

 the summits of hills, forms a picturesque object on the landscape, with 

 its broad, fan-shaped leaves. The date-trees of India and Ceylon 

 neither possess the loftiness nor the beauty of foliage of those growing 

 in such luxuriance on the banks of the Shatt-al-Arab, in Mesopotamia, 

 and indeed seldom bear fruit. The areca-palm, which is cultivated in 

 most parts of India, and is indigenous on the Malabar coast, furnishes 

 the " betel-nut," which, mixed with " paun," forms a composition which 

 the Hindoos are in the constant habit of chewing. 



There are five well-marked varieties of the cocoa-nut. 1 The Tembili, 

 of which there are different descriptions, is a very well-formed, hand- 

 some nut, of oval form and bright-orange tint. The Buddhist priests 

 of Southern India and Ceylon generally contrive to keep a store of the 

 choicest kinds of the Tembili in their temples as offerings to the passer- 

 by, who is expected to make a return. The Nawasi is slightly heart- 

 shaped, of lighter color than the preceding, and bears an edible husk. 

 On stripping off the outer rind, the inner skin turns to a pale-red color, 

 and is fit for use. There is a third variety of nut, somewhat small and 

 round, and in color much resembling the Tembili. Then there is the 

 common cocoa-nut, so well known to every urchin ; and, lastly, we have 

 the double (Zadoicea Seychellorum), which, as its name implies, is a 

 product of the Seychelles, a group of islands in the Indian Ocean. 



In old times the most marvellous medicinal virtues were attributed 

 to nuts of this description, and they were considered unfailing antidotes 

 to all kinds of poison. As their origin was veiled in obscurity those 

 obtained being either caught-up fioatings at sea or on the coasts of 

 the Maldive Islands, where they were thrown up by the tides and 

 currents the most extravagant sums were asked and obtained for 

 them. Thus it is recorded that the Emperor Rudolph II. offered 4,000 

 florins for one which chanced to be for sale, but, the bidding being 

 considered insufficient, the precious nut passed into other hands. It 

 is even said that a merchant-ship, with her freight and stores complete, 

 has been bartered in exchange for one. 



The natives believed that the trees producing these nuts grew at 

 the bottom of the sea, and were enchanted palms, which vanished the 

 instant the adventurous diver attempted to reach them. Death was 

 1 " The Cocoa-nut Palm," by W. B. Lord, R. A. 



